Advisory Opinion No. 2001-19

Application Of The Code To A State Employee’s Outside Marketing Efforts

Ms. Karen Caliendo, Personnel Services Officer 2 in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), has asked the State Ethics Commission how the requirements of The Code Of Ethics For Public Officials apply to her outside, part-time work as a distributor of health and wellness products. Most particularly, she wishes to know whether her status as a state employee affects her eligibility for the Department of Administrative Services’ Minority and Small Business Set-Aside Program.

Ms. Caliendo status as a state employee does not prohibit or restrict her participation in the Set-Aside Program. It should be remembered, however, that under §1-84(i) of the Code any state contract she receives must be awarded through an open and public process.

Additionally, one aspect of Ms. Caliendo’s proposed marketing, the sale of air purification products, merits special attention. Specifically, although she has no air management responsibilities, DEP is responsible for administration of the State’s air pollution statutes. Therefore, Ms. Caliendo must be scrupulous in avoiding any use of confidential or inside information available at her Agency, and must similarly refrain from any implication in her marketing that her products have the official sanction of the DEP. See, Conn. Gen. Stat. §§1-84(b) and (c).

With these restrictions in mind, Ms. Caliendo is free to pursue the outside employment in question, including application for and participation in the State’s Minority and Small Business Set-Aside Program.

By order of the Commission,

Rosemary Giuliano
Chairperson